Following a meeting of the ERC match officials committee, the referees for rounds 3 and 4 of the Heineken Cup and Amlin Challenge Cup have been announced.
The meeting reviewed match official performances in rounds 1 and 2 of the Heineken Cup and Amlin Challenge Cup as well the performances of European match officials in IRB international matches and domestic leagues.
ERC match official performance manager Donal Courtney said the importance of the refereeing of key areas such as sealing off at the tackle, offsides at rucks and kicks and obstruction at lineout mauls had been reiterated to the participating teams and to the referees.
Courtney also emphasised that tournament organisers ERC continues to provide an opportunity for coaching staff to share their feedback on the performances of match officials and that this feedback was an important part of the review process.
Nigel Owens of Wales will be in charge when reigning Heineken Cup champions Leinster travel to Clermont Auvergne on Sunday, December 9 for the first of two intriguing back-to-back games.
With Leinster unbeaten and Clermont having secured a maximum 10 points so far, the fixtures between two of European club rugby’s heavyweights will go a long way to deciding the outcome of Pool 5.
The much-anticipated round 3 clash of Pool 1 leaders Saracens and Munster at Thomond Park on Saturday, December 8 will be refereed by France’s Romain Poite.
Meanwhile, IRFU international referee Alain Rolland has been appointed to take charge of Pool 2 front runners Toulouse’s clash with the Ospreys at the Stade Ernest Wallon on the same day.
Jerome Garces of France will referee the meeting of Pool 4 leaders Ulster and Northampton Saints in front of an expected full house at Franklin’s Gardens on Friday, December 7 with Wales’ Leighton Hodges in charge at Salford City Stadium for the Sale Sharks-Toulon game in Pool 6.
Rolland’s fellow Irish whistlers, Peter Fitzgibbon, John Lacey, Dudley Phillips and George Clancy, have also been handed Heineken Cup refereeing appointments for next month.
In addition, Phillips is pencilled in for the all-English tie between London Irish and Gloucester in the Amlin Challenge Cup on Saturday, December 8.
Two more IRFU referees, Leo Colgan and David Wilkinson, have been appointed to upcoming games in the second tier tournament.
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HEINEKEN CUP REFEREE APPOINTMENTS:
ROUND 3 –
Friday, December 7
Pool 4: Glasgow Warriors v Castres Olympique, Wayne Barnes (England)
Pool 3: Connacht v Biarritz Olympique, Greg Garner (England)
Pool 4: Northampton Saints v Ulster, Jérome Garces (France)
Saturday, December 8
Pool 5: Scarlets v Exeter Chiefs, Mathieu Raynal (France)
Pool 2: Toulouse v Ospreys, Alain Rolland (Ireland)
Pool 3: Zebre v Harlequins, Neil Paterson (Scotland)
Pool 6: Sale Sharks v Toulon, Leighton Hodges (Wales)
Pool 1: Munster v Saracens, Romain Poite (France)
Pool 1: Racing Metro 92 v Edinburgh, Peter Fitzgibbon (Ireland)
Sunday, December 9
Pool 6: Cardiff Blues v Montpellier, John Lacey (Ireland)
Pool 2: Leicester Tigers v Benetton Treviso, Pascal Gauzere (France)
Pool 5: Clermont Auvergne v Leinster, Nigel Owens (Wales)
ROUND 4 –
Friday, December 14
Pool 1: Edinburgh v Racing Metro 92, Dudley Phillips (Ireland)
Pool 3: Biarritz Olympique v Connacht, Leighton Hodges (Wales)
Saturday, December 15
Pool 2: Ospreys v Toulouse, George Clancy (Ireland)
Pool 2: Benetton Treviso v Leicester Tigers, Alain Rolland (Ireland)
Pool 3: Harlequins v Zebre, Mathieu Raynal (France)
Pool 5: Leinster v Clermont Auvergne, Wayne Barnes (England)
Pool 5: Exeter Chiefs v Scarlets, Romain Poite (France)
Pool 4: Ulster v Northampton Saints, Nigel Owens (Wales)
Pool 6: Montpellier v Cardiff Blues, Greg Garner (England)
Sunday, December 16
Pool 4: Castres Olympique v Glasgow Warriors, Andrew Small (England)
Pool 1: Saracens v Munster, Pascal Gauzere (France)
Pool 6: Toulon v Sale Sharks, John Lacey (Ireland)
AMLIN CHALLENGE CUP REFEREE APPOINTMENTS:
ROUND 3 –
Thursday, December 6
Pool 2: Worcester Warriors v Perpignan, Neil Hennessy (Wales)
Pool 1: Bordeaux-Begles v Mont-de-Marsan, JP Doyle (England)
Friday, December 7
Pool 5: Grenoble v London Welsh, Andrew McMenemy (Scotland)
Saturday, December 8
Pool 3: Rugby Mogliano v Newport Gwent Dragons, Ian Tempest (England)
Pool 5: I Cavalieri Prato v Stade Francais, Ian Davies (Wales)
Pool 4: Bath Rugby v Cammi Rugby Calvisano, Cedric Marchat (France)
Pool 1: London Irish v Gloucester, Dudley Phillips (Ireland)
Pool 4: Bucharest Wolves v Agen, Giuseppe Vivarini (Italy)
Pool 2: Bizkaia Gernika RT v VEA Femi-CZ Rovigo, David Wilkinson (Ireland)
Pool 3: Bayonne v London Wasps, Manius Mitrea (Italy)
ROUND 4 –
Thursday, December 13
Pool 3: London Wasps v Bayonne, Andrew McMenemy (Scotland)
Pool 5: Stade Francais v I Cavalieri Prato, Neil Hennessy (Wales)
Friday, December 14
Pool 1: Mont-de-Marsan v Bordeaux-Begles, Luke Pearce (England)
Pool 4: Agen v Bucharest Wolves, Ian Tempest (England)
Saturday, December 15
Pool 5: London Welsh v Grenoble, Marius Mitrea (Italy)
Pool 4: Cammi Rugby Calvisano v Bath, Laurent Cardona (France)
Pool 1: Gloucester v London Irish, Neil Paterson (Scotland)
Pool 2: VEA Femi-CZ Rovigo v Bizkaia Gernika RT, Leo Colgan (Ireland)
Pool 2: Perpignan v Worcester Warriors, Ian Davies (Wales)
Sunday, December 16
Pool 3: Newport Gwent Dragons v Rugby Mogliano, David Wilkinson (Ireland)
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